Protective pads for joint surfaces, e.g., of the knee or elbow, to be worn during sports activities such as skating and skateboarding, are widely available.
Many forms of protective padding are constructed as composite assemblies in which a shock absorbing layer is positioned within an outer shell and/or attached to a rigid plate. Examples include: Landi et al. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,496,610 and 5,840,397 and Hu U.S. Pat. No. 5,450,625, all of which describe composite pad assemblies having a shock absorbing layer in the form of a honeycomb.
Other protective pads have been integrally formed by molding, e.g., as described in Kushitani U.S. Design Pat. No. 298,669, in Hayes U.S. Pat. No. 4,354,280, and in Holtje U.S. Pat. No. 2,093,388.